Espeon's Gift
by Ktunes
Summary: Nigel's, a klutzy boy with strange memories of Lakefront Verity, Pokemon Journey through Sinnoh and beyond with two mysterious friends at his side. [HOLD]
1. Introduction

This idea came to me all of a sudden, and I decided to write it out and see what others thought about it.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon or anything related to it. All I own is the idea for this Fanfic, and the character Nigel, as he came from my imagination.

No copyright infringement intended

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Nigel looked out his window, brown eyes scanning eagerly for the flash of brown and tan that signaled his friend's arrival. The young boy was only ten, and had not had an interest in the Pokemon that covered his planet until he was eight, when his friend had come to him on that fateful, stormy day. He tapped his fingers on the sill of the window impatiently, shifting the pack that was on his back, held to him by a single strap over his left shoulder. He was a scrawny boy, but tall, with mouse brown hair that messily fell into his eyes. He wasn't handsome by any means – his face was average and boyish. He was klutzy and unstable, an accident waiting to happen. He wore a simple black tee shirt and faded loose jeans, hastily held up by a worn black belt. His finger drumming halted as he scanned the forest that pretty much surrounded his home in Twinleaf, Sinnoh. The peaceful town much better suited his mother than Jubilife City, the bustling economy city of Sinnoh. He'd moved to Sinnoh when he was eight from Hoenn – the Pokemon were even stranger here than they'd been back there, but his friend was a comfortable creature that wasn't strange to him at all.

"Come on, come on, where is she?" he muttered, impatiently squinting at the forest.

Finally, he saw the flash of brown and nearly jumped out of his shoes. He bolted for the door, yelling out to his mother, "Be back later, ma!" before running into said door. He stepped back, hastily flung it open, and ran down his porch steps. Nigel took a sharp left and headed towards the forest. He tripped over some spindly bushes and fell to the dirt. Pulling himself up, he saw his friend in the small clearing they usually met in, sitting on the old stump, waiting for him patiently.

Nigel finally made it to the stump and fell on his knees, grinning like a madman. He only had skinned knees this time – last time he'd nearly broke his elbow. Not that that mattered right now. No, all Nigel cared about was the creature on the stump: an Eevee, and a wild one at that. Not for long though, he hoped; now that he was ten, he was trying to convince Eevee to come with him and be his starter Pokemon. The three starters for Sinnoh – Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup – did not interest Nigel.

"Hey, Eevee, there you are," Nigel said, forgetting his irritation from earlier.

"Eev," the Eevee said, nuzzling her head to Nigel's hand.

Nigel grinned and scratched behind Eevee's long brown ears.

"You'll never guess what happened today," Nigel began. He sat on the edge of the stump and began to tell Eevee his story. Their time together was often spent like this – Nigel had a rough understanding of everything Eevee said. Eevee lived further in the forest, close to Lakefront Verity. According to Eevee, there was a small group of Kanto Pokemon that lived there; the kind of Pokemon that appeared after a trainer got the National Pokedex from Professor Rowan, Sinnoh's Pokemon Professional. The two swapped stories just about everyday. Nigel told Eevee stories of trainers, Pokemon battles, and the happenings of his daily life. Eevee, in return, conveyed stories of Sinnoh's legends or things about different Pokemon she had encountered. Not that Eevee was old – she was quite young, only level 5; another reason Nigel used to persuade Eevee to be his starter.

"Emily went to get her first Pokemon," Nigel said excitedly. "She said she's choosing a Piplup."

Eevee nodded slowly. "Eevee, eev eev, Eevee?" (_What are you going to choose?_)

Nigel blinked. "Well, I'm still hoping you'll be my starter." The boy sighed, looking back at his house, which he could glimpse through the trees. "Though, since you aren't budging, I guess I'll go with a Chimchar." Eevee thoughtfully followed his gaze, thinking hard. "Eev?" (_When will you go?_) Nigel looked down at his friend, sorting through hazy memories. He really didn't remember how he'd met Eevee – the memories were shattered and blurry. He just had the feeling that Eevee had saved his life at the Lakefront somehow.

"Tomorrow," Nigel decided.

"Eevee." (_I'll go._)

Nigel looked at her in surprise. "You'll be my starter?"

"Vee." (_Yes._)

Nigel nearly jumped for joy, but managed to contain himself. "Yes! Thanks, Eevee! You have no idea how much this means to me. You know I don't really like Pokemon, and choosing a strange Pokemon to travel the countryside with is nerve-wracking for me." Nigel grinned, stroking Eevee lovingly. He needed to pack, get his stuff in order for his journey. Nigel wondered where he had gotten this urge to travel from. Maybe it was from Eevee.

Maybe it was to escape those foggy memories of Lakefront Verity.

Either way, Nigel was going on a Pokemon Journey. Eevee would be his starter. All he needed was to head to Sandgem Town and get his Trainer Card and Sinnoh Pokedex.

Nigel stood up and stroked Eevee one more time. "Alright, I've got to get stuff set for our journey. You should get some rest, we're going to faraway places." Nigel pumped a fist in the air, trying to get Eevee excited. Eevee nodded and bounced to her paws, grinning a Pokemon grin. The two went their separate ways – Nigel back to Twinleaf, and Eevee back to her Lakefront home. The sun was still high in the sky, so Nigel had plenty of time to pack and tell his mother. His mother knew nothing of Eevee, or his barely remembered adventure to he Lakefront. He wouldn't tell her either, not yet.

Not until he was certain.

He'd only spent a few hours in the forest with Eevee, but his mother wasn't surprised to see him bounding through the door earlier than usual, yelling. "I'm going on my journey tomorrow!" the ten year old announced. His mother gave a slight incline of her head, also wondering where he'd gotten the dream to travel Sinnoh with Pokemon.

Nigel took the stairs to his room two at a time. Once in his room, he locked his door and slung his pack on his bed. He walked over to his PC, where over the two-year period he'd started to like Pokemon, he had stored Pokemon goods there for when he turned ten. He withdrew seven Potions, two Antidotes, four Paralyze Heals, and eight Oran Berries. He organized his pack in sections, storied the items in the correct pockets, and set his pack on his nightstand. He stared out his window in the direction of the Lakefront, waiting for the sun to set and rise again.

A memory floated to the surface of his brain.

"_You'll never make it back."_

_Water, water was everywhere. There was no air. He needed air. He couldn't move much, but he could see dark figures all around him. They were bigger than he was, at eight years old. So many of them, too, surrounding him. How had he gotten here? The voices, though he was sure he was underwater, came strangely clear to his ears:_

"_You'll never make it back, you'll never make it back..." they chanted._

Nigel shivered, coming back to reality. He turned away from his window and closed his eyes.

Yes, he was definitely leaving this place.


	2. The Girl From The Islands

_Nigel stared at the cave entrance before him. He was in the middle of Lake Verity, staring at the cave where a legendary Pokemon was said to sleep. He trembled with fear but he shook it off and started into the cave. The inside was dimly lit, a pool of water covering the floor. It didn't look like just any pool of water, though. The water made a pattern if you looked down at it from the ceiling of the cave. Nigel couldn't make out the background of the cave, it was strangely out of focus. He advanced to the middle of the cave and looked around. How had he gotten here again?_

_There was a rumbling sound. It was faint at first, and it grew louder. It filled the whole cave in a matter of seconds, and the cave started to shake. Nigel fell to the floor as the cave shook harder, like an earthquake. Rocks began to tumble from the ceiling, and Nigel screamed as the rocks hit the ground, making more tremors in the ground and throwing water everywhere. Nigel stood and started running towards the entrance, smaller rocks bouncing off of him. He tripped and screamed again, covering his head with his hands as a rock came loose from the ceiling above him._

Nigel woke with a start. He was cold but sweating profusely, and he threw the covers off of him and stumbled out of bed.

He stumbled over to the wall and felt around for the light switch. He flicked it on and looked around his room. His heart was beating crazily in his chest, and adrenaline rushed through his bloodstream. As he fully awoke, he stared out his window. The sun was starting the rise. Nigel felt his forehead, then wiped the sweat from his brow. It had only been a dream.

_No, a memory,_ the back of his mind said.

He ignored it and headed to the bathroom.

He brushed his teeth and hair, and pulled on traveling clothes. He picked a black and gray vest over a white tee shirt, and wrapped a long red scarf around his neck and let it hang down to his waist. He pulled a red and white cap over his mouse brain hair, fixed a watch on his left wrist, and a gold brace on his right wrist. A pair of blue jeans held up by his old worn belt completed his outfit, and he hastily packed other clothes and some food items. Then he flew down the stairs and landed in a heap at the bottom.

"I'm leaving, ma!" he yelled, getting to his feet. He heard his mother in the kitchen walk through the living room and over to the stairway. "Be careful," was all she said, and out Nigel went. He ran into the forest, heading for the clearing to wait for Eevee. He found Eevee waiting for _him_.

"Eevee! Ready to go?"

Eevee nodded and jumped into Nigel's arms.

_I need a Pokeball,_ he thought. He shrugged and headed out of the forest, towards Route 201. _Professor Rowan will probably give me one in Sandgem._

The walk through Route 201 was eventless. He ran into several Pokemon, mainly Starlies, Bidoofs, and Shinxes, but Eevee took them all out. He had to use several of his Potions, though. When he arrived in Sandgem, he headed straight for the lab.

The lab was fairly neat. The inside was pretty much all white. It was big with stuff lined along the walls instead of spread out, which made Nigel uncomfortable. He felt out of place as he approached an older man with white hair lining his face, top of head, and upper lip. He was watching Nigel, a little surprise in his eyes. "Professor Rowan?" Nigel asked, and the older man nodded. He was a little heavyset but by no means fat. He smiled and nodded. "You must be a new trainer. What is your name?"

"Nigel."

"Last name?"

"Elkin."

"Alright; is the Eevee yours?"

"Yes, she is, but I need a Pokeball for her," Nigel admitted sheepishly.

Professor Rowan nodded and went into a small room that was connected to the main lab. Nigel strained to see inside the little room, but the Professor walked out too quickly for him to focus on it for long. The old man handed him a card, a Pokeball, and a Pokedex. Nigel quickly caught Eevee and attached her Pokeball to his belt, and then peered at his card. Nigel Elkin was printed at the top. He looked back up at Professor Rowan. "Thanks."

"No problem, young man. You are now an official Pokemon Trainer."

"Great! Can I go now?"

Rowan nodded. "Of course."

Nigel turned and headed out of the lab. So far, so good.

Once out of the lab, Nigel went straight to the PokeCenter, which was very nearly next door to Professor Rowan's lab, separated only by a fence. Beside the Center was a path to Route 202. There were a few houses and a PokeMart on the other side of the path, across from the Center. Sand stretched out from the beach south of Sandgem and covered a quarter of the town. Nigel headed to the PokeCenter.

He gave the woman behind the counter Eevee's Pokeball and hung around the counter. The Center was devoid of life besides the nurse. Nigel felt strange, but shook the feelings off. Eevee was quickly healed, and Nigel went to the Mart next. He stocked up on Pokeballs quickly. He had saved up money for two years, so he had a decent amount of cash for his journey. Besides, when you won trainer battles, you got prize money. As long as he kept winning, he'd be able to pay for the journey.

Route 202 was a mini maze of ledge and trees, but there was no way to get lost. Walking through the first patch of grass, Nigel found another Shinx, and decided he would capture this one. No way he could beat eight Gyms with just Eevee. "Tackle it, Eevee."

Eevee obeyed, and tackled the wild Shinx. The Shinx was not pleased and tackled Eevee back. There was a short tackle fight, and finally Nigel called out, "Okay, Eevee, back down." He pulled one of the empty Pokeballs from his pack, and chucked it at Shinx. It bounced off the dark blue, light blue and yellow lion-like Pokemon's head, shooting a red beam at it. The Pokeball wiggled on the ground for a moment, the center glowing, and then went motionless. The center stopped glowing, and Nigel walked over and picked up his new Pokemon. He returned Eevee to her Pokeball, and headed back to Sandgem. Shinx wouldn't do well in his next battle if it was still weak from capture.

At the PokeCenter, it was still empty except him and the nurse. Nigel wondered how far Emily was by now while Eevee and Shinx healed on the nurse's special machine. When the nurse handed him his Pokeballs, she said, "I'm Nurse Joy. You must be a new trainer, right?"

Nigel nodded. "My name's Nigel."

"Nice to meet you," Nurse Joy said. "All the PokeCenter nurses are named Nurse Joy; we're all related somehow."

"At least it'll be easy to remember their names." Nigel made a face. Memory was definitely not his strongpoint.

Nurse Joy smiled and nodded, and then Nigel left for Route 202 for the second time.

Route 202 was short and he found himself walking up the steps to the weird platform Jubilife City rested on. He'd trained Eevee and Shinx up some, and had a few trainer battles; he couldn't remember any of the trainer's names but they'd all been Youngsters. There Pokemon had all been Starlies, Shinxes, or Bidoofs. There had been one Kricketot, but that was it. Eevee was not recorded in his Pokedex because it was originally a Kanto Pokemon, which disappointed him. He couldn't learn anything about his friend from his Pokedex.

He found the PokeCenter among the tall buildings and houses. He healed his Pokemon and then walked around. There was a TV Station building, a GTS building, a Trainer's School, and a building for Poketch applications, whatever that was. Nigel was heading to the Poketch building when he ran into a girl. Literally.

"I'm sorry," Nigel said as she turned around. She had long blue hair that fell down to her waist, with a white beanie pulled over her head. A pink scarf was wrapped around her neck and fell down to her waist, much like his own, but pink. She had a pink miniskirt and pink boots with blue leggings and a blue and white shirt. She smiled and waved her hand in a dismissing manner. "Oh, it's okay!" Her voice was cheerful. Nigel noticed three Pokeballs at her waist. "You're a Pokemon Trainer?" he questioned. She nodded, and then held up her hands. "I don't want to battle right now, though. I'm looking for the Pokemon Center."

"It's back there." Nigel pointed towards the red roof, which was barely visible from his current position. She stood on her tiptoes, peering in the direction he indicated.

"Oh! There it is. Thanks!"

She started off at a run towards the Center, and Nigel spun around and followed her impulsively.

He was panting by the time they reached the Center, all alone on its little street. "Hey! Wait!" She finally slowed and turned around, looking surprised. "What is it?"

He stuck out his hand, trying to catch his breath. "I'm Nigel. I'm a trainer, too."

She smiled and accepted his hand, shaking it. "I'm Laura."

"Nice to meet you... uh, yeah. Shall we go in?"

They entered the PokeCenter, which wasn't as empty as the one in Sandgem had been. A few trainers lounged in the Cafeteria area or close to the counter, waiting for their Pokemon. Nigel followed Laura as she walked up to the counter and pulled her three Pokeballs off her waist, handing them to the nurse. She turned and headed to one of the couches against the wall, and Nigel followed her again. Something – maybe the fact she was wearing a scarf too – was telling him to follow her.

Nigel sat beside her on the couch. "So, where are you from, Laura?"

"Nowhere."

"Nowhere?"

"I mean, I'm not from Sinnoh."

"Me either, I came here from Hoenn. What about you."

"I came from the Sevii Islands."

"Really?"

"Yep."

"Cool. How long have you been a trainer?"

"Not very long, only about a week or so. You?"

"This is my first day."

"Really?" She giggled. "What Pokemon did you choose?"

"I didn't get one of the starters, I went with Eevee." He wasn't sure if it was pride in his voice or gloating.

"Really? Me too." She grinned.

"Wow, really?" There were a lot of reallys in this conversation.

"Yeah, but he's a Leafeon now."

"Leafeon? Can I see?"

"Yeah, when he's healed. I also have two other Eevees. I'm going to make my team out of Eevee evolutions."

"That's kind of neat. But aren't there seven evolutions?"

"Yeah, but on the two that evolve from happiness night or day, Espeon and Umbreon I think, I'll have one Eevee evolve into one of them, and the other one I'll have to do without."

"That's a pretty good idea. Where'd you get all the Eevees, though? Aren't they rare?"

"Yeah, but my parents breed them, and I'm going to breed them, too." Laura said this with pride, and Nigel grinned. He glanced up at the counter, and then nudged Laura. "I think your Pokemon are ready." She hopped up and practically skipped up to the counter. She retrieved her Pokemon and then motioned for Nigel to follow her. He obediently got up from the couch and followed her outside. It was late in the afternoon, beginning to cool down. Laura had a Pokeball in her hand, which she pressed and released the Pokemon inside.

The Pokemon was a Leafeon. It had a light colored body, with leaves growing from its elbows and knees, and leaf designs replacing its tail and ears. "Leaf," the Leafeon said, raising its chin to stare up at Nigel. He whistled. "Wow. That's awesome. I wonder what Eevee will evolve into. How'd you get a Leafeon anyway?" Laura giggled again and returned her Pokemon and stored its Pokeball. "Level up near this rock in Eterna Forest," she said, fixing her scarf and looking around. "Well, I'd better get going - "

"Wait!" Nigel interrupted her. "Can I travel with you? I – I'm not really into Pokemon, but I've had this urge to travel for a while, and I knew going on a Pokemon Journey would allow me to travel and you've got some experience..." he paused to take a breath. "I'm not a pervert and I won't try anything on you, I swear. I don't even like girls yet. Not that I'm gay, I'm not! I just... augh..." he trailed away, shaking his head as she giggled uncontrollably. She grinned widely, putting her hands on her hips. "You're funny. Sure, we can travel together! And don't worry, if I was afraid you'd 'try something' on me I would've ditched you already."

Nigel smiled and straightened up. "Great, thanks! I really don't know all that much."

"Well, to save you from the Trainer's School, I'll help you with that, too."

"Thanks." He made a face. "I've had enough school to last me."

She giggled again and started walking. "Well, let's go, I've got to train Eevee up. Oh! What Pokemon do you have, besides your Eevee?"

"I've got a Shinx, too," Nigel said, jogging to catch up with the girl. They walked down the dark colored street down towards Route 202, chatting. They walked down the steps together and into the tall grass, scanning for Pokemon or other Trainers. "Hey, Laura," Nigel said as she sent out her Eevee to battle with a Starly, "Where'd you get your scarf?"

"Eevee, Tackle," she said and then turned to face him. "My dad gave it to me; where'd you get yours?"

"I honestly don't know. It was in my closet and I grabbed it incase I get cold."

She giggled for the umpteenth time, turning back to the battle. The Starly had used Growl to lower her Eevee's Attack. "Tackle." Her Eevee smacked into Starly again with force and the Grey Starling Pokemon fainted. Eevee turned around and bounded back to Laura, and Nigel pulled out his own Eevee's Pokeball. He released his first Pokemon, almost afraid he wouldn't be able to tell them apart. But his Eevee had darker fur than Laura's, that he noticed right off the bat. The two Eevees touched noses and then began to circle each other. Nigel thought they were going to fight at first, but then they nuzzled each other and turned to look at their trainers. Laura grinned, "He likes yours. Yours must be a female."

Nigel nodded, "Yeah, mine's female. They won't make an Egg in front of us, will they?" Nigel did not want to see that sort of thing.

Laura laughed. "No, I hope not." She returned her Eevee to his Pokeball.

The rest of the afternoon was spent talking and sparring with wild Pokemon. Laura did not say why she'd left the Island to come to Sinnoh, and she didn't say much about her parents. The only information he had on them was that her mother had blue hair, which explained why _she_ had blue hair; he had asked if her hair color was natural. It wasn't light, but it wasn't extremely dark either; it was in the middle, a nice medium blue color that matched her leggings and shirt. When dark began to fall, Nigel yawned and stretched. "Well, I'm heading back. What time do you usually get up?"

Laura shrugged, yawning as well. She recalled her Eevee and thought for a moment. "Usually around eight." Nigel nodded and started for Jubilife. He'd get a room at the PokeCenter. He was going to postpone camping out as long as possible; not that he hadn't camped out before, but he'd never camped out with the risk of wild Pokemon – or worse – coming in the middle of the night. "Okay, I normally sleep later than that, but would you wake me up when you get up?"

She nodded, speeding up so she could walk beside him. She was shorter than him, but only by two or three inches. "Sure." They headed into Jubilife City, where the lamp posts had lit up and cast long, eerie shadows over the dark streets. Nigel couldn't wait until tomorrow – they would head for Oreburgh tomorrow, and Laura had said she would explain Pokemon types to him. He had almost forgotten his dream, and the strange blurry memories about Lakefront Verity and his meeting with Eevee.

Almost.


End file.
